Pressure on our available water resources is increasing. Drought, climate change, stricter quality requirements and environmental standards are making it increasingly important for industry, drinking water companies and public organisations to make smarter use of local water streams. Water reuse already offers enormous opportunities, yet further applied research remains crucial.

Over the past few years, Nuoro has realised several successful water reuse installations, including the first in Europe to convert treated domestic wastewater into drinking water. Through these projects, Nuoro has developed extensive expertise in selecting, combining and scaling technologies into reliable installations at industrial scale.

Today, this experience is also being applied in research projects and pilot installations. In these projects, Nuoro brings together innovative technologies to further investigate specific challenges and enable new applications for water reuse. Examples include membrane technologies such as ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis, compact biological treatment such as MABR, and additional filtration and oxidation steps. Further treatment and processing of concentrates, as well as the use of underground aquifers as strategic buffers (ASR), are also key challenges for the sector.

During this keynote, water expert Jan Bos Van Hemelrijck will demonstrate how research and pilot-scale testing help determine the right process choices. By experimenting with technologies under real-life conditions, factors such as water quality, energy and chemical consumption, robustness and operational costs can be evaluated over a longer period. Thanks to Nuoro’s flexible pilot and rental installations, this can also be done on site and without immediately investing in a full-scale installation. This enables organisations to reduce their technical and financial risks and establish a well-founded basis for a reliable water future.